Quote:1, 2, and 3 are given.


4. Whatever Dave Caldwell thinks about Bradley, Khan didn't want the Jags to be another Cleveland Browns. So Gus had to stay. The extension (just one year) was to facilitate free agency and team unity. In free agency money rules, but other factors can have an effect. Players generally don't want to come to a team if they think the coach will be changed next year.


5. Caldwell spent TWO years overhauling the defense. Last year the Jags added Odrick, House, Skuta, and Brown, and drafted Fowler. And even if the defense was good last year the Jags would have gone after key free agents. It's what you do with the highest cap total. The offense was not a problem last year and the Jags still added a RB and OT on that side of the team.


And you forgot:


6. Defensive Coordinator Bob Babich was fired.


So defensive coaching was considered a factor by the Jags management. Offhand I'd say case 2, both personnel and coaching were the problem. The question is did Bradley get the maximum out of the players he had? Not from my perspective. Other teams with worse personnel had better results on defense. There's no excuse in giving up a near (one less than the) team record number of points against the weakest offensive opposition in Jaguars history. Go back and look at the Jags roster from 2011 when they were 11th in points given up. Were they really that much better?

I think Bob Babich probably needed to go, sure. But the fan base was also extremely bloodthirsty at the time and Bradley's hand was forced; he had to make a sacrificial offer.


But the point remains. David Caldwell explicitedly said he was going to fix the defense over the course of this offseason. Did he fire the defensive minded head coach? No. Were 4 of his 5 big name free agents defensive upgrades? Yes. Were 6 of his 7 draft picks defensive players? Yes.


What's that tell you about where David Caldwell falls on the debate between talent level vs coaching ability? Bear in mind Babich's replacement came from in house and is basically a direct extension of Bradley's philosophy.

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